Ian Cowie was named Consumer Affairs Journalist of the Year in the
London Press Club Awards 2012. He has been head of personal finance at
Telegraph Media Group since 2008, having been personal finance editor
since 1989. He joined the paper in 1986. He is @iancowie on Twitter.

Last year, anyone paying less than £175,000 was exempt from paying Stamp Duty. Since January 1, buyers of homes priced between £125,000 and £250,000 must pay HM Revenue & Customs up to £2,500 for the privilege of a new address.

Worse still, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) is slamming stable doors by leaning heavily on lenders to deter them from advancing the sort of loans which first time buyers relied on to get a foot on the housing ladder. This is an understandable reaction to the credit crisis but not a helpful one. Even if – as I expect – house prices fall further when interest rates rise after the General Election, making it wise for prospective buyers today to delay, regulators should not remove individuals' freedom to decide what is best for them.

As I pointed out when the FSA announced its new 'get tough' approach last year, there is a lot to be said for 'irresponsible lending'. So long as borrowers understand the risks they are taking with, say, 100pc mortgages, there is no reason why regulators should intervene to prevent people seeking the rewards these loans generated for many during recent decades.

Restricting access to credit, where willing lenders serviced demand from willing borrowers in a free market, means that young people who start the property game with nothing are condemned to end it with nothing. Increased regulation, however well intentioned, is yet another example of how Britain is leaping backwards into a re-run of the dreary 1950s with social mobility falling towards zero.

Never mind the macro-economics. Self-interest is the one motivation you can always rely on and my personal experience of the property ladder was shared by many others in my generation. One of the best financial decisions I ever took was a 100pc mortgage for about five times my salary 25 years ago. No such loans are available today. Without such 'irresponsible lending', I might still be renting a bedsit in Kilburn rather than owning a home in Highgate.

That's not intended to sound like bragging but to demonstrate why people who fail to understand the importance of credit – and, dare I say it, house price inflation – in the creation of wealth are either very naive or perhaps living under hedges on a diet of roots and berries. They have certainly missed one of the simplest ways to accumulate tax-free gains available in our lifetime – at least until now.

Will today's bedsit tenants thank the regulators for freezing them out of home ownership and condemning them to years of throwing cash away on rent? I doubt it. The Government should call off the FSA, slash Stamp Duty and give young homebuyers a fighting chance.